Wage theft is a form of financial bullying, where unscrupulous employers who care more about their wallets than their workers bend the law, often until it breaks. The terrible thing is that this kind of illegal conduct breaks the backs of New York’s working men and women who struggle to put a roof over their heads and food on the table.
That’s why I’m proud to report some very recent successes on the part of my partner, Darren Rumack, who heads my Wages & Hours Department:
After a Federal Court mediation, a construction worker who had helped build a nursing home successfully settled his case after his boss had refused to pay overtime.
A construction company refused to give a construction worker pay for work that he had already performed. We successfully settled the case without having to file suit.
We sued in Federal Court on behalf of a client who worked as a garage/parking lot attendant. After we filed suit, the employer agreed to pay 90% of the entire amount we were suing for.
A large retail company with multiple stores had misclassified our client as a manager who was exempt from overtime. We contended that our client was not a manager, but an employee. And that as an employee who had often worked 50+ hours a week, he was owed a great deal of past overtime. We successfully resolved the case in arbitration.
Whether in federal court or New York State court, whether the issue is overtime, back pay, misclassification as management or as an independent contractor–whether our client was undocumented and being abused by an employer exploiting fear and anxiety over immigration status–whenever and however employers try to take advantage of New York’s working men and women, it’s our privilege to help our clients get the justice they’ve worked for and deserve.